March 2022
Dan Paracka
dparacka@kennesaw.edu
dparacka@kennesaw.edu
Bio Note: : I am an international educator with over 40 years of experience learning how to broaden worldviews. I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Sierra Leone, West Africa where I learned to grow rice and tap palm wine. I also taught English in the People’s Republic of China where I learned to speak Mandarin and met my wife, Yan. I grow bonsai trees from whom I learn patience. I enjoy learning and writing poetry.
Cooking Dinner Meditation
Earning your trust and respect
Cutting the grass or letting it grow
Riding my bike or walking the dog
Washing the dishes
Barefoot on the cool green earth
Changing diapers
Listen with my heart
Release my ego
Be present in the moment
When everything happens at once
Amidst all the plans and preparation
Deadlines and competing demands
The unexpected
Where is my supply of patient understanding
Nothing wasted for the greater good
In the ordinary day to day
Between simple pleasures and minor disappointments
Exuberance and heartbreak
In this merry messy life
What was I thinking, feeling, doing?
Originally published in publication
©2022 Dan Paracka
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